Relationship between structure and dynamic mechanical properties of a carbon nanofiber reinforced elastomeric nanocomposite

The tensile and dynamic mechanical properties of a nanocomposite, containing modified carbon nanofibers (MCNFs) homogenously dispersed in an elastomeric ethylene/propylene (EP) copolymer semicrystalline matrix (84.3 wt% P), have been correlated with the structure development. These properties were characterized by in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction during stretching, dynamic mechanical analysis and X-ray analysis techniques over a wide temperature range. Upon sequential drawing, the tensile strength of the nanocomposite film was notably higher than that of the unfilled polymer even though both samples exhibited a similar amount of crystal fraction and the same degree of crystal orientation, revealing the effect of nanofiller reinforcement in the semicrystalline matrix. The mechanical spectra of the 10 wt% MCNF filled samples in both stretched and non-stretched states showed broadening of the elastic modulus at high temperatures, where the corresponding crystallinity index also decreased. It is conceivable that a significant fraction of chain orientation is induced in the vicinity of the nanofillers during stretching, and these stretched chains with reduced mobility significantly enhance the thermal mechanical properties.